SSE's £1.5bn profits increase is 'a kick in the teeth' for consumers | The Big Deal

21st May 2014

Today, SSE announced a massive annual profit of £1.55bn - a 9.6
per cent increase on last year. We're caling on SSE to pass this
windfall onto their customers by offering them a price cut, rather
than a cynical price freeze. Read our statement below.

Jonathan Senior, Head of Research at ThisIsTheBigDeal.com,
said:

"SSE's announcement of a £1.55bn profit is a kick in the teeth
for consumers when their prices went up by 8.2% last year. So we're
stunned that they've announced a massive profits increase of 9.6
per cent after losing 370,000 customers in the past year.

When SSE announced a price freeze in March, we said it was
cynical to offer a freeze when prices are unaffordable. We stand by
that. And in light of today's announcement, we're calling on SSE to
put the customer first and turn their profit windfall into a price
cut."

ThisIsTheBigDeal.com is a national campaign for cheaper energy
bills. It brings people together to harness their collective buying
power and deliver lower bills. 10,000 people have already signed
up, over 60% of whom have never or hardly ever switched. People can
sign up online at ThisIstheBigDeal.com, or by calling 0333 222
5871.

"SSE's price freeze is a cynical move to pre-empt the referral of
their industry to competition authorities. Such gestures are easily
affordable after energy bills have doubled and profits quadrupled.
A competitive energy market does not announce price freezes in
response to government pressure; it offers price cuts in response
to consumer demand. The best way for consumers to achieve that
price cut is to join a collective switch like The Big Deal, and
bargain together for a fairer tariff. Then we will see if the Big
Six are serious about competition."